GAME #7
East Carolina | Thursday, Dec. 4 | 7:00 p.m. | Wolstein Center
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Cleveland State vs. East Carolina
SETTING THE SCENE
The Cleveland State women's basketball team will begin a four-game homestand this Thursday (Dec. 4), hosting East Carolina at 7:00 p.m. The Vikings enter Thursday's contest with a 3-3 record, while East Carolina is 6-1 on the season. This will be the third meeting between the two teams, with ECU owning a 2-0 advantage in the overall series.
A WIN THURSDAY WOULD…
Put the Vikings back on the winning track…Keep Cleveland State perfect at home this season…Bring Kate Peterson Abiad within one win of the 150th of her career…Mark CSU's first-ever win against the Pirates.
LAST TIME OUT
The Vikings came up just short at Eastern Michigan Tuesday evening (Dec. 2), falling to the Eagles, 71-68. The loss dropped the Vikings to .500 on the season, as they now stand at 3-3. For the sixth time this season, CSU had three players finish with double-figure points, led by Imani Gordon who notched a season-high 19.
SCOUTING THE PIRATES
East Carolina enters Thursday's contest with a 6-1 record - their lone loss of the year coming against No. 22 Syracuse last weekend at the Junkanoo Jam…Thursday will mark ECU's second true road game of the season, with the Pirates standing at 1-0 on the road and 2-1 at neutral sites…Through the first seven games, ECU has been led by Preseason All-American Athletic Conference selection Jada Payne, who is averaging 17.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game…As a team, the Pirates have grabbed 130 offensive boards, pulling down at least 20 in four of their first seven games…ECU is also averaging 15.1 steals per game - a mark that ranks sixth among NCAA Division I teams.
HOME-SWEET-HOME
The Vikings will be trying to keep their record perfect at home on Thursday, as the Vikings enter the contest with a 2-0 record at the Wolstein Center this season. Cleveland State has a total of 15 regular season home games during the 2014-15 season, and will be trying for its fourth perfect season at home in program history, and the first under head coach Kate Peterson Abiad.
QUICK TURNAROUND
The Vikings have been making the most of their time this season, playing three games over a six-day span multiple times throughout the year. CSU is currently in the midst of one of those stretches - as the Vikings played at Eastern Michigan on Tuesday, Dec. 2 and will face East Carolina on Thursday, Dec. 4 and Kent State on Sunday, Dec. 7. Cleveland State's busiest stretch of the season came two weeks ago, when the Vikings traveled 3,784 roundtrip to face Minnesota, Florida Atlantic, and FIU (Nov. 19 - 23).
GORDON CLOSING IN ON 600 BOARDS
Senior Imani Gordon is quickly closing in on 600 rebounds for her career, entering Thursday's contest with 579 boards. Gordon, who leads the team averaging 6.7 rebounds per game this season, would become just the 15th Viking all-time to reach 600 career rebounds. After the first three weeks of the 2014-15 season, Gordon ranks 15th all-time at Cleveland State with her 579 boards.
…GORDON ON THE OFFENSIVE END
Imani Gordon is also closing in on the top-20 career scoring list at CSU, entering Thursday's game with 883 career points. For the second straight season Gordon is averaging double-digit points, posting 12.5 points per game through the first six contests this year. With 117 more points and 21 more rebounds, Gordon would become the 13th Viking all-time to notch 1,000 points and 600 rebounds on their career.
VIKINGS WITH THE HELPING HAND
Entering Thursday's contest against East Carolina, Cleveland State continues to lead the Horizon League averaging 18.7 assists per game. Through the first six games, the Vikings have notched 112 total assists, including a season-high 26 against Notre Dame (OH) last Saturday (Nov. 29). Every Viking who has been in a game this season has posted an assist, with six Vikings notching 14 or more. Cori Coleman has a team-high 20 helpers on the year, ranking ninth among league players averaging 3.3 assists per game.
…AND LIMIT TURNOVERS
The Vikings also lead the Horizon League with a 1.4 assist-to-turnover ratio this season, committing just 78 turnovers to their 112 assists. Cleveland State has had single-digit turnovers twice this season (Toledo & Florida Atlantic), while they are forcing their opponents into an average of 15.1 turnovers per game.
VIKINGS AMONG LEAGUE LEADERS
After the first three weeks of the season Cleveland State leads the Horizon League in three statistical categories, and ranks in the top-4 in four others. The Vikings lead the league in blocked shots (4.0), assists (18.7), and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.4), while they rank second in scoring offense (75.8) and field goal percentage (.442).
COLEMAN MOVES UP SCORING LIST
Senior Cori Coleman continues to move up the CSU career scoring list, entering Thursday's contest ranked 13th all-time with 1,159 career points. Coleman, who leads the Vikings and ranks fifth in the Horizon League averaging 14.8 points per game, is just 41 points shy of becoming the 12th Viking all-time to record 1,200 career points. She needs just 28 more points to move into 12th place on the list which is currently held by Megan Williams (1993-97).
VIKINGS FROM BEHIND-THE-ARC
After the first six games of the season, Cleveland State leads the Horizon League averaging 9.2 three-pointers per game. The Vikings have notched at least 10 three-pointers in four of the six games this season, including a season-high 13 against Minnesota (Nov. 19).
…COLEMAN FROM BEHIND-THE-ARC
Cori Coleman has once again been one of Cleveland State's top three-point shooters, recording 13 three-pointers through the first six games. Coleman ranks third in the Horizon League averaging 2.2 three-pointers per game, and enters Thursday's contest with 165 career three-pointers. She currently ranks third on the CSU record list, needing just one more three-pointer to tie current assistant coach Britt Korth (2004-08) for second all-time.
TRACKING 1,000 POINTS
Imani Gordon and Kiersten Green are both closing in on 1,000 career points as they continue their senior seasons - as Green currently has 915 points and Gordon has 883 career points. The duo would become the 25th and 26th Vikings to record 1,000 career points, and the ninth and 10th to do so under head coach Kate Peterson Abiad. They would also be the second and third Vikings on the 2014-15 roster to achieve the feat, as Cori Coleman notched her 1,000th career point last season.